it's awfully hard to -- for her to mount a defense. >> hi, andrea. those of us who are also admirers of john kerry have a complex position, but i think they're goet both amazing american patriots and have done a great deal of good for the country. either one would be excellent. i guess the specific thing i would contribute today on this topic is to object to the argument that was made in the "new york times" op ed page this morning by an activist who suggested that susan rice has been too friendly to various african strongmen, and the op ed did not resonate very well with me at first, but i went in and did some more research to go through the les of the people that this author listed as people that rice had supported too much, and they happen to have run five of the dozen or 15 best countries in africa over the last decade in terms of their economic performance, and their internal stability. it doesn't mean that everything is perfect, obviously, and i'm sure ambassador rice wouldn't suggest that everything is perfect in countries like uganda, and rwa